


Burning Inside

by chasingthebooty



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, American Football, Bottom Eren Yeager, Cheerleader Eren, Eventual Smut, Football Player Levi, M/M, School Dances, Top Levi (Shingeki no Kyojin), crossdressing!eren, eren also wears suspenders, eren's a freshman, eren's a really cute bottom okay, levi's a senior
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-13
Updated: 2015-09-13
Packaged: 2018-04-20 15:33:47
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 15,179
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4792856
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chasingthebooty/pseuds/chasingthebooty
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Levi's captain of his school's football team, and he also just so happens to have a huge crush on the only male cheerleader around that wears a skirt and thigh highs.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Burning Inside

                Levi’s always had a thing for cheerleaders.

                That’s actually a lie. Levi’s never cared for cheerleaders. Or any sort of group that dares to call themselves a _“sport”_ when all they do is jump around on the sidelines and flash the crowd with their short skirts and low-cut tops. Levi thinks of cheerleaders as, quite frankly, _annoying,_ and he can’t even begin to describe how many times he’s been flirted with by someone in one of those skimpy uniforms. He’s had a few too many boobs rub up his arm, even just this past month, and while Levi should probably be glad that so many girls want him to touch their pussies, Levi really couldn’t care less for any of the chicks who have approached him. They’re all the same - snotty girls who only want him ‘cause he’s _so cute, his abs are nice, he’s so strong, have you seen him shirtless?_

Levi only deals with having cheerleaders around him all the time because he sort of _has_ to. As the leader of his high school’s American football team, having been quarterback for nearly three years now, he’s used to getting all of the attention. He’s used to having his name be called over and over from the sidelines by various voices, to the point where it becomes just background noise when he's playing a game of football. He’s used to having girls stake out in the locker room to try to get a peek of his body, and while he firmly believes those girls need some sort of discipline for doing so, any complaints that he’s sent in get ignored because the cheerleaders are _so precious to the school, how could any of those pretty little girls do harm?_

Levi’s grown accustomed to short showers and bathing in a swimsuit because of that, by now.

                Levi had thought that maybe his hatred for cheerleaders would follow him forever, it’d keep itself firmly implanted inside his heart for the years to come, years in which Levi would continue to play American football into maybe even his college years and continue to be annoyed by girls in short skirts coming up to him, shoving their crotches onto his fingers. Most of the cheerleading team is female, at that. It’d been that way since Levi started playing athletically for the school. It’ll likely _stay_ that way, too.

                Except, there _is_ one male that Levi’s noticed is on the team. The word _“noticed”_ being a vast understatement. Levi actually remembers every little thing he's learned about the boy, and he even remembers how things had gone down when Levi first ran into this boy.

                Levi had gone into the locker room one day, his shirt already halfway off as he tried to get himself changed as quickly as he could. He was late that day, and all of the other football players were already on the field doing their warm-ups. The locker room was filthy, to say the least - none of the other kids seem to know what the hell sanitation is, and Levi had to maneuver himself over what must have been hundreds of different discarded shirts and pants on the ground, because it’s apparently too hard to open up a damned locker and put some clothing inside it.

                Levi thought maybe he’d been alone in that room, left to suffocate on the stench of heavy cologne, until he’d set his football gear down on a bench and looked up from where he’d had his eyes planted to the ground. On the other side of the room stood a boy with the innocence of a freshman still dusting his features, eyes wide, grunting while he tried to shove his leg down a silky fabric.

                He only vaguely remembers what he’d said, this having had happened almost four months ago, but Levi knows for sure that he’d ended up next to the boy, holding up a thigh high for him while the kid got his foot inside it. It hadn’t even occurred to Levi until after the boy had left that he was wearing a cheerleading uniform, _a female one at that,_ and it’d been the first time in all of his years in high school that he’d seen a male wear the school’s cheering outfit.

                He’d later tried to bring up the subject to one of his closer friends, Mike Zacharius - who plays as the running back position for the football team - though he should've known that was a bad idea. Mike turned right around and relayed the information to Hanji, which was exactly what Levi wanted to avoid. Hanji is Levi's more _eccentric_ friend, to say the least, and now she's decided that she's most definitely going to perform experiments on the boy one day. She also has it decided that Levi has a crush on the male, which isn't entirely untrue.

                Hanji's the errand runner for the team, which unfortunately for Levi, means that she spends a hell of a lot of time with the cheerleaders. She's spent so much time with them - or more specifically with the cute boy who Levi had helped put the uniform on - that she's managed to find out everything from his name to whether he prepares his cereal by putting the flakes in first or the milk.

                Levi was embarrassed to ask, but he'd gotten Hanji to tell him the name of the boy he'd helped. He said it was merely because the boy was unique, being the only male cheerleader for the school, though he has a feeling that Hanji suspects Levi's curious for more reasons than just that.

                As for the boy's name-

                " _Levi!_ A _certain someone_ is looking at you!"

                Levi turns his head toward the sound of the voice, and he sees Hanji come up to him with her arms full of assorted Gatorade bottles. She drops a few as she clumsily stumbles her way to Levi, but her smile never falters in even the slightest.

                "Who?" Levi asks, trying to sound as bored as he possibly can. He really doesn't want Hanji to know how much he's hoping that the _certain someone_ is the kid that Levi helped get dressed nearly four months ago.

                "You know who! Your little kitten! Your puppy. Your platypus. Your sea otter. Your world. Your-"

                "Oi, Shit-Glasses, he's not my _world_."

                "But he's your kitten? And puppy? And platypus? And sea otter? And-"                               

                "I'm going to fucking murder you if you keep talking."

                "Eren's over by the bleachers if you wanna see him." Hanji pokes Levi's nose with her index finger - dropping several more Gatorade bottles in the process - smiling devilishly, her finger trailing down to Levi's chin. With no effort, she whirls Levi's head around to look at the only male cheerleader, _Eren_.

                If Levi didn't have any sort of dignity, he wouldn't hesitate to walk up to Eren right then and kiss him. He's just _so_ beautiful, Levi could never find the right words to describe him even if he sat in front of a dictionary for hours on end. Eren, he's a sort of beautiful that the other cheerleaders aren't - the other members of that group, they're pretty with their shapely legs and made up faces. Eren’s the kind of person that Levi has to do a double take on.

                It's not every day that Levi runs into a boy who looks as good as Eren does in a skirt. It's not every day that Levi finds someone with skin so golden, so smooth and begging to be touched. It's not every day that Levi accidentally ends up staring at a certain tanned brat for longer than he'd stare at his own reflection in the mirror before school each morning.

                Eren's turned out to be a bit special to Levi, and Levi doesn't even know too much about him. For instance, why he wears a female uniform instead of a male one for cheering is a mystery. There's also the question of whether or not Eren's as interested in Levi as Levi is in Eren, but whenever Levi is able to work up enough courage to speak to Eren, he's at least found Eren to be friendly towards him. That in itself is admirable, since Levi has been told numerous times that his face is _very_ unwelcoming, his eyes always narrowed, his eyebrows drawn, his mouth knit into a thin line. And yet, so many girls still want to sit on his dick for whatever reason.

                Eren's the opposite of Levi. Eren is _incredibly_ welcoming. Even from halfway across the football field of the school - as that's the distance between them now - he can see Eren's cheeks flush red and his eyes wide. His eyes look almost blue from the distance, but he knows firsthand that the closer he is to Eren, the greener those eyes look. Levi could spend an eternity staring into those eyes. Around the pupils are a ring of gold, the yellow of them blending evenly into the aqua hue to the point where Eren's eyes almost look like they could have been a masterpiece painted by an expert. Sometimes, whenever Levi's lucky, it almost seems like his eyes reverse, and the aqua tone plants itself around the pupils while the gold fills the irises.

                Levi makes it his goal to talk to Eren at least once every day, even if it's just a quick hello. He nearly chokes on being so close to perfection each and every time, but hell if it isn't worth it.

_Speaking of which._ "Eren?"

                Eren stands frozen for a moment, and it turns out that Hanji was actually right. Eren _is_ staring at Levi, but his expression is so mixed that Levi's conflicted between calling it one thing or the other. He can't tell what Eren's thinking, and he certainly can’t tell if Eren’s expression is a happy one or an upset one.

                Just as soon as Levi tries to decipher him, however, Eren smiles, bolting away from the bleachers to come stand in front of Levi. His skirt ends just above the midpoint of his thighs, his leg coverings ending just below _that_. His shirt is sleeveless, but he wears an undershirt with tight black sleeves that go just past his wrists. The few slivers of tanned skin that show through, Levi can't get enough of them - the skin of his thighs between his skirt and leg coverings, the skin of his fingers, they all contrast the white and blue of the school colors so perfectly. The cheerleading uniform is mostly white, which works perfectly with Eren's complexion.

                Eren wears heavy eye makeup, makeup that becomes clearer the closer Eren draws himself to Levi. He has white eyeliner and blue eyeshadow with glitter dusting his cheeks, the colors highlighting every one of his features. He looks like he's ready to cheer in an actual game, but all Levi and Eren are supposed to be doing today is practicing.

                "Levi?" Just that word, and Levi can feel the excitement oozing out of Eren. He really _is_ like a puppy. The simplest of things seem to excite him, and Levi's proud to say that he's one of those things.

                Levi would hate to admit it, but he's been paying an awful lot of attention to Eren ever since he first met him. Enthralled by the mere idea of a male cheerleader at first led him to being enthralled by his pretty legs, and now for some ungodly reason, his chest hurts whenever he looks into Eren's eyes. His eyes look mostly green right now, as he stands close to Levi, but there are definitely those little specks of gold in his irises that Levi adores so much. Not that he'd ever admit to adoring Eren's eyes, of course. At least, he wouldn’t admit it while in public like this.

                "Hey, kid," Levi smirks, "What's up?"

                "Ah, um, nothing. Just getting ready to start rehearsing our cheers, yeah?"

                "Any chance I could watch?"

                Eren's face turns pink, his shoulders drawing together, clearly nervous. It's so fucking cute, and Levi's proud of himself for being able to put Eren into such a state.

                "Er," Eren breathes, "Don't you have football practice, though?"

                "I'm captain. It won't kill me to miss one practice. The other guys need training more than I do."

                "Full of yourself, aren't you?" Eren grins, his face teasing.

                “It’s not being full of myself if it’s true.”

                “ _Sure it isn’t._ ”

                “When did you become such a _brat?_ ”

                “And when did _you_ become so _old?_ ”

                “I’m still in high school.”

                “Yeah, but you’re a senior, aren’t you?”

                “So?”

                “It’ll only be a few years before you’re a _senior citizen_ , now _._ ”

                Levi can’t really fight the smirk that stains his features as he talks to Eren. There isn’t anybody else who he knows that can keep a smile on his face like this, even if it’s just a smug half-grin.

                And that’s just one of the many things that makes Eren special to Levi. The fact that he can’t fight the urge of his lips whenever he’s around Eren.

                Even just four months ago, when he’d had his hands on the boy's thighs, the blush over Eren’s cheeks lit a fire inside Levi that he didn’t know existed. A fire that keeps him wanting more of Eren in his life, a fire that makes his ears perk up at Eren’s name. It’s the same fire that melts his heart whenever Eren smiles at him, and it’s the same fire that makes his stomach flip at the brush of Eren’s skin against Levi’s, in the rare moments that Levi’s blessed with such an occurrence.

                “Can I watch or not, _brat?_ ” Levi asks, and Eren flutters his eyelashes, clearly embarrassed.

                “I- I mean, I guess you can, but- why do you want to?”

                “Mm. I don’t feel like playing football today.” It’s only somewhat of a lie. In all truthfulness, Levi doesn’t give a shit about whether he plays or not. He’d just much rather see Eren perform.

                “I’m not really good though. At cheering. ‘Cause this is my first year doing it. Ever.”

                “You’ve never done gymnastics or anything?”

                “Nuh-uh.”

                “I’m surprised they let you on the team.”

                “Well, I promised that I’d do flexibility exercises after school every day, so, uh.” Eren shrugs, and his eyes have left Levi’s to stare at the grass beneath them. Eren’s taller than Levi, though not by an incredible amount, so there’s really no hiding the nervousness that Eren has. “And, besides, I think they just really like that I’m a boy. Like, a boy who’s on the team for the sport, not so that he can, uh, be surrounded by _girls._ ”

                “How do they know that’s why you’re not on the team?”

                “Er- Uh, I like boys. Not girls.”

                Levi blinks, and it only occurs to him now that he’d never actually bothered to find out which way Eren swings. He just sort of assumed that, since _he_ found an interest in Eren, there was just no humanly possible way that Eren could like women.

                He just likes to believe that he’s always had a chance with Eren.

                The fire that has itself firmly planted inside Levi only bursts into a fury of flames at the thought that he most definitely now has the ability to woo Eren over, having been born with the right parts for Eren’s preferences. Or, in simpler terms, Levi’s just really fucking glad that Eren likes dick.

                “Yeah, I know.” Levi walks past Eren, heading towards the bleachers where the rest of the cheerleaders sit, and Eren stumbles up beside him.

                “What do you mean?”

                “Kinda rare to find a straight boy willing to wear a skirt, yeah?”

                “But it’s not impossible.”

                “No, but that doesn’t change the fact that you’re still gay.”

                “You don’t care that I like boys?”

                “Not at all. You know, Eren, I’m like you.”

                “Huh?”

                “I like boys.”

                Levi turns his head over to look at Eren, the two of them only mere steps away from the crowd of cheerleaders moving about on the bleachers. They’re close enough that, if they cared to, they could hear whatever it is that the high-pitched female voices are chatting on about, but Levi can’t bring himself to care about anything but Eren at the moment. Plus, he’s afraid that if he acknowledges the presence of the cheerleaders, one of them is going to come down and ruin the moment he has with Eren by trying to draw Levi’s attention away from him through flirting.

                Not that Levi would ever willingly shift his focus away from Eren. It’s just, Eren would probably feel awkward, and hence he’d leave Levi to himself, stuck having to fend off whichever girl has decided to try her luck with him.

                Eren doesn’t look at Levi with his head turned towards him, but rather, he stares out at him from the corners of his eyes, his face even redder than before. The redness does a neat job at highlighting the glitter on his cheeks, and fuck, Levi doesn’t want to have to admit it to himself, but the only word that comes to mind to accompany the sight is _cute, cute, cute, cu-_

                “Y-You like- wait-”

                “Oi, angel,” _good god, Levi, keep your cool, he’s just a boy,_ _why is it so hard to breathe around him?_ “Show me something good today, yeah?”

                “You’re actually going to be watching?”

                “Uh-huh. At least until that bastard, Coach Pixis, notices my absence. Guy gets cranky when I intentionally skip out on practice.”

                “Huh.” Eren steps out in front of Levi, turning around quickly so that his back is to the bleachers and his face is to Levi. He’s still blushing furiously, and Levi’s positive that his flushed skin can’t be just a result of the heat. “That _bastard_ is my grandfather.”

                “Hah.” Levi can tell that Eren isn’t actually mad at him, if the little smile on his lips is anything to go by. “You don’t really look anything like him.”

                “Yeah, well, I might by the time that I’m like, seventy.”

                “He’s _that_ old?”

                Eren doesn’t give him an answer, because right about then, a whistle blows that calls all of the cheerleaders to attention. Eren hops off, meeting the group of girls off to the side in the field in front of the bleachers. Levi takes a place previously occupied on the benches, keeping himself close enough to see Eren through the crowd but far away enough that he’s not in fear of being hit by a launched cheerleader during a particularly risky stunt.

                Off in the distance, the football players are huddled in a circle. Likely, their coach, Pixis, is in there taking attendance and formulating a plan of action for practice. Levi’s certain that it won’t be long until he’s caught and dragged off for questioning, but hey, it’s worth it. It’s worth it, because Eren keeps sending quick glances back at Levi. It’s worth it, because the girls have started doing practice flips, one by one going up and standing in front of the captain, taking a few seconds to run before throwing themselves forward onto their hands, flipping themselves over onto their feet, and repeating the process in a cartwheel sort of motion, and Levi knows it won’t be long until he gets to see Eren doing that trick.

                Really, any sort of trouble that Levi gets in for ditching practice is worth it, because of _Eren_ and his deep eyeshadow and glittery cheeks and short skirt and tanned skin and smooth hair and-

                “ _Eren!_ ”

                Levi’s head whips towards the cheerleaders at the sound of Eren’s name - he’d been eyeing the football players briefly to see what they were doing, only to find out that they’re still fucking around, huddled in a circle - just in time to watch him step up to the front of the crowd of girls. Eren sends Levi another nervous look, which in turn makes a few girls look Levi's way and give Levi little hand waves. Levi doesn’t return those waves.

                Eren shakes his arms, loosening his limbs. He takes one step back before pushing himself into a run. Levi faintly hears the rather loud voice of his coach, Pixis, in the background, but he chooses to ignore it, his ears intent on listening to Eren and Eren _only_.

                Something about Eren is utterly _beautiful._ There’s something about the way that the ruffles of his skirt dance over his thighs, the way that his tanned skin shows through his white thigh highs, the hook of his leg coverings no doubt going to leave behind indentations on his flesh. The thigh highs look almost like socks, with thick blue lines at the top end, but they’re so thin that it’s hard for Levi to think of them as such. Eren’s black undershirt sleeves stick out, being the only thing that he’s wearing that’s so _dark,_ but Levi doesn’t think that it looks bad. Nothing on Eren looks bad. Eren could be wearing literal garbage bags and Levi knows that he’d still have difficulty tearing his eyes away from him.

                Levi’s heart hurts when Eren, after three or four successful flips, hits the fifth one with his feet on the ground, before stumbling forward and collapsing onto his knees. All of the other girls before him had been able to do their round perfectly, completing so many cartwheels that Levi didn’t bother to keep count. He doesn’t want to see Eren be reprimanded for a little accident. Will he be? Levi doesn’t know how cheerleading practice works. If it were the football team, he’d be yelled at by Coach Pixis and then told to do laps around the field. But this isn’t football.

                Eren slowly pushes himself back up onto his feet, knees wobbling slightly. The first person he looks at is Levi, but Levi’s an idiot. Levi just stares at him, face unfeeling. Levi expects Eren to start crying or sulking or something - why wouldn't he? Levi's been told that his face is scary, and, yeah, maybe a few kids have burst into tears just from looking at him. So anybody would assume that his neutral face means that he's upset.

                But Eren doesn't even frown at Levi. Actually, he smiles. Or, at least, it _looks_ like a smile - Levi can only faintly tell, given how much space is separating the two of them. But it looks so much like a smile, and the image of it burns itself into Levi's mind. Eren turns away and heads back into the crowd of girls, his spot in front of the group being replaced by some other chick with a bow in her blonde hair.

                Levi almost wants to rush down there and make sure that Eren’s okay. Certainly he’s gotta be at least a little _embarrassed,_ right? So obviously he needs comfort.

                Levi can’t bring himself to move, though. His legs feel like they’ve been glued to the bench. Eren makes him so utterly _weak,_ and his smile, holy fucking shit, _Eren’s smile_ \- it only lasted a few brief moments, and Levi misses it. It’s one thing to see his casual smiles, the little grins that he gives everyone. It’s an entirely different thing to see him give Levi what feels like a _special_ smile, for Eren didn’t smile at just _anybody._ He made it a point to look at _Levi_ when he smiled.

                Maybe Levi just wants to think that he’s special.

                He really wouldn’t mind being special. At least in Eren’s eyes.

                If nothing else, Eren’s special to Levi. He’s special, in that just the thought of him sends Levi’s heart into palpitations, in that his name has somehow managed to light a fire inside Levi. It’s this same fire that makes Levi’s eyes roam through the crowd of girls until they land on Eren, and he stares at him for several moments until, finally, Eren returns the gaze. Eren’s shining, literally _shining_ \- okay, yeah, it’s only because of the glitter on his cheeks, but it’s the same concept - under the sun. His tanned skin looks, for a lack of better words, _mouthwatering_ , and Levi can’t hear anything but his heartbeat pounding through his ears.

                Levi really wants to think that he’s something special to Eren, because, after only four months of having known him - and only having had a few sparse conversations with him, at that - Eren’s already become special to Levi.

                                                                                                             ~|~

                “ _Levi?_ Where were you? I missed you! Mike did, too, right Mike? Mike missed you the most. He almost started crying when I pointed out that you were missing. Right? _Don’t shake your head!_ Mike’s lying, Levi, he really did mi-”

                “Shut the hell up,” Levi groans, pushing past Hanji. Hanji must’ve been waiting for him, as the second that he stepped foot out of the men’s locker room and into the hallway, Hanji hopped up and shoved herself right in front of him. She probably found some way to keep Mike with her, too, as that’s likely the only reason that the guy is even here right now and not off doing nefarious _Mike_ things. Whatever that entails.

                “ _Don’t be such a grumpy-goo,_ ” Hanji whines. “And- _oh?_ Eren? Is that- _Eren!_ ”

                Levi’s pushed, rather roughly, off to the side, where he collides with Mike. Levi’s able to straighten himself out in time, however, to see Eren get squished against the wall right beside the locker room exit, Hanji’s face close to his and her arms around his shoulders. She’s rambling on about something, but Levi can’t hear it through Eren’s choked pleas of _“please, please get off of me-”_

                It’s actually Mike who steps up and drags Hanji away from where she’d been coddling Eren. He pulls her to the opposite wall, only the three or four feet of narrow hallway separating Eren from Hanji. Levi moves over to take his place next to Eren, only to find that Eren’s _laughing._

                “S’not really the best way to make friends,” Mike says with a hint of nervousness in his tone. He still has one hand over Hanji’s shoulder, keeping her pressed to the wall.

                “Make friends? I’m not trying to make friends!” Levi dearly wishes Hanji would lower her voice. There _are_ still other boys in the locker room just behind them. “Eren’s _already_ my friend! We’re like best friends, too. I know where he lives. I also know his favorite color. It’s blue. He-”

                “Erm,” Eren interrupts her, “That, uh, that’s enough. I think they get it.”

                “No, _please,_ ” Levi rolls his eyes, “Tell me more. Tell me everything you know about Eren.”

                It comes off as sarcastic, but Levi honestly wouldn’t mind sitting and listening to Hanji for hours on end if the subject is centered around a certain male cheerleader.

                “Well-”

                “Ah, no, no, no, Hanji, uh, we’re good. Um, Levi?”

                “Yeah?”

                “Can you- can you take me to your locker?”

                Levi raises his eyebrows at him, a little disappointed at the subject change, but shrugs and grips onto Eren’s elbow. Hanji tries to follow them, but thankfully, Mike’s there to stop her.

                “Why my locker, brat?” Levi attempts to make small talk, leading Eren through the few hallways that separate them from Levi’s locker. His locker’s located on the bottom floor, situated on the hall where the icky math classrooms are. Levi wants to throw up every time he enters that damned hallway. His strong suit isn’t in numbers. It’s in athletics.

                And, apparently, it’s in admiring lush angels - _brats_ \- with smooth skin and _wait,_ _why the hell is Eren wearing suspenders?_

                “Just wanna know where it is," Eren says.  Levi keeps his fingers around Eren’s elbow, but Eren makes no move to try to remove them. “I’m gonna put water balloons in there one day.”

                “You wouldn’t.”

                “Why not?”

                “You love me too much.”

                “I’ve never once said that I love you.”

                “Yeah, but I know you do. You’re not subtle about it.”

                Levi’s never shat more out of his ass than he is right now. But he likes flirting - _flirting?_ When the hell did this become _flirting?_ \- with Eren.

                “What gives it away?”

                “Your ears. They’re red.”

                Eren wiggles his arm out of Levi’s grasp, covering his ears with his hands. He still has his cheerleading makeup on, clearly not having had washed it off while he was changing in the locker room. The white sparkles on Eren's cheeks wink at Levi as Eren sticks his tongue out at him.

                “Number eight hundred and forty-five.”

                “What?” Eren’s fingers fall away from his ears, grabbing onto his _suspenders_ \- Levi can’t help but find Eren’s choice in clothing as _odd_. He didn’t think anybody wore suspenders before reaching sixty years old. Eren’s wearing shorts, shorts that are held up by his _rainbow-striped suspenders, and hell, Eren thought that nobody could see that he was gay? The kid is oozing flamboyance._ His shirt is a plain color, and the outfit is complete only by the bowtie he has twisted around his neck. If he were wearing thick-rimmed glasses, this kid would look like the ultimate wannabe-hipster. That, or an incredibly youthful old geezer.

                That’s not to say that Eren isn’t cute, though. Because Eren’s still cute. _Adorable_ , even.

                Levi’s not sure that he’s ever used the word _“adorable”_ before in his entire life. But he makes exceptions for Eren.

                “My locker number,” Levi clarifies, “It’s number eight hundred and forty-five. So that you remember it for when you decide to put water balloons in it.”

                “You don’t believe that I’ll do it, do you?”

                Levi stops, the two of them having finally reached their destination. His fingers fumble with his lock before he’s able to swing the door to his locker open, showing off the bland, nearly-empty compartment to Eren.

                It’s only now that Levi realizes he hasn’t seen Eren wearing anything but his cheer uniform. He hasn’t really had the chance to, though - these past four months, Levi’s only had a few conversations with Eren. He hasn’t actually bothered to sit down and watch him run through his practices before, and Levi certainly hasn’t talked to him anywhere outside of the football field and locker room.

                Levi likes what Eren’s wearing. Even if it’s a little outlandish.

                “Nah,” Levi shakes his head at Eren’s words. “I don’t believe you.”

                Eren’s eyebrows raise. “I’m gonna show you. Just you wait.”

                “Can’t wait, brat.”

                “Why do you call me that?”

                “Call you what?”

                “A brat.”

                “Why do you act like one?”

                “But I don’t!”

                “You’re acting like one right now.”

                “How?”

                “You’re being stubborn. Brats are stubborn.”

                Eren lets out a groan of frustration, a grin pulling at his lips. He tugs absentmindedly on the straps between his shoulders and neck, his face pressing against the open door of Levi’s locker. Levi’s not actually doing anything in it, but rather, he’s standing in front of it, trying his absolute hardest not to give away the fact that he’s fucking _ecstatic_ to be around Eren right now. It’s not particularly hard to hide his happiness - Levi’s not the most expressive person, per se.

                It’s not like they have anywhere to be. School’s ending soon, and if they hang around long enough, it’ll be time to go home before they can make it to their respective classes of the hour. So all Levi has to do is keep Eren around for an extra ten minutes or so. Which Levi doesn’t mind doing. At all.

                “Erm, Levi?”

                “What is it, Eren?”

                “Uh- you, uh, you know how there’s a school dance at the end of the semester, right?”

                “Mm, uh-huh. It’s next month or so, isn’t it?”

                “Yeah. Before Christmas break.”

                “Go on.”

                Levi looks up at Eren’s face, subconsciously taking in as much detail as he can. Eren’s hair falls over his forehead in a way that begs for fingers to thread through them, and, _oh hell,_ Eren’s eyes are _wide_. Levi can see his fucking reflection in them. Those eyes of his are a sort of emerald hue, a sapphire blue swirling around the edges that paints Levi’s reflection a cool color. Eren’s eyelashes flutter, his pupils shifting back and forth for a minute before landing on Levi again. He gives Levi a weak smile.

                “If nobody else asks me to go,” Eren says, “Will you take me?”

                “To the dance?”

                “Yeah.”

                Levi pretends to consider it for a moment, taking pleasure in the worried look that etches itself over Eren’s features with each second that Levi teases him, no answer falling from his lips. In all truthfulness, there’s no question as to whether or not Levi will take Eren to the dance. Levi doesn’t even like school dances, but he’ll make an exception for Eren.

                He’d be willing to make a lot of exceptions for Eren.

                “I don’t see why not,” Levi shrugs.

                “Yay!”

                “As long as I don’t have to dress up.”

                “You don’t! I promise. You can wear whatever you want to.”

                Levi nods, finally deciding to shut his locker. He latches it up, and he motions for Eren to follow him as they start walking, no particular stopping point in mind. Levi’s just decided that they’ll pass time this way, and they’ll depart when the final bell of the day rings. Which should be at any second now.

                Only if Eren wants to leave, that is. Levi wouldn’t mind sticking around with Eren for far longer than the last few allotted minutes he has.

                Levi wouldn’t mind taking him home, if that’s what it takes to keep Eren around.

                “Oi, Eren.”

                “Yeah?”

                “Why do you wear a dress?”

                “I’m sorry?”

                “What I meant was, why do you wear a girl’s cheer uniform? Aren’t there male versions of that?”

                “Um, yes.”

                Levi waits for Eren to elaborate, but just then the bell rings, earning a little jump from Eren. It’s cute, really, and it kind of reminds Levi of a small animal. Like a kitten. Or a puppy. Or a platypus. Or a sea otter.

                Levi tries to say something to Eren, maybe a quick _“goodbye,”_ but Eren’s gone before he can get the word out. All he’s given is a quick wave, and just as quickly as that, Eren’s disappeared to whoever-the-hell-knows-where.

                Levi’s almost ashamed to admit it, but he already misses him. He misses Eren fumbling with his suspenders, _shit, Levi’s never seen suspenders look so cute on a boy,_ and he misses Eren’s deep blue and white eyeshadow and the glitter over his cheeks, and really, there’s nothing about Eren that he doesn’t miss.

                And he certainly doesn’t regret anything when a certain Coach Pixis claps his hand on Levi’s shoulder and pulls him away to have a _“little talk about skipping out on practice.”_

                                                                                                             ~|~

                Eren’s never late for practice.

                That’s a lie. Eren’s actually late fairly often. Or, at the very least, he’s late to arrive into the dressing room. He was late on that very first day that Levi had seen him several months ago, and honestly, he’s been late nearly every other day after that, and he always blames it on _“his classes being on the opposite side of the school.”_ Today is no exception.

                The difference between today and previous days, however, is that Levi’s waiting for him. It’s the first day of practice since Levi had asked to watch Eren perform for the other cheerleaders, and since that day, only two eventful things have happened.

                One being, Eren’s started waiting for Levi at his locker every morning. He’s always dressed up in colorful suspenders and belts and bowties and one day, he’d even shown up in a pair of boots that reached his thighs. They were black, to match the shirt he’d decided to wear, and while Levi’s certainly not an expert on fashion, he thinks it to be one of his favorite outfits that he’s seen on Eren. Besides the cheer uniform, of course, but very few things could beat _that_ one.

                The other eventful thing to happen to Levi would have to be _Hanji._ She’s somehow managed to make it known around the school that Levi has a crush on Eren, and while it might not be untrue, Levi doesn’t want everybody to know that. Already, he’s had issues with girls trying to fuck him. Those issues are only going to get worse once they realize that there’s competition, aren’t they? It’d only make sense.

                He tried to express this to Hanji, but she just brushed it off and pulled Mike - who has somehow managed to become Hanji’s shining example for everything that she needs an example for - close to her, boasting about how Mike’s managed to _“overcome the obstacles of being a high school senior, having had trumped through the rumors of him owning a sex dungeon while simultaneously secretly being the school’s janitor,”_ and Levi honestly doesn’t remember any of those rumors going around. Hanji insists that she’d heard them, though, so Levi doesn’t fight it.

                Still, Mike’s rumors were _false._ If it becomes known that Levi wants to shove his hands down Eren’s pants, he can’t truthfully deny it. Because it’s true. Levi _wouldn’t_ mind loving Eren.

                Levi hears the door behind him open - as he’s been sitting on the wooden bench in front of the lockers of the men’s locker room - and he turns around just in time to see Eren stumbling into the room, arms full.

                “Oi, Ere-”

                “No time,” Eren gasps, tossing his items down beside Levi. “Help me get dressed.”

                Levi stares at him for a moment, only vaguely registering the request as Eren unhooks his suspenders and strips himself of his shirt. Levi’s already in his football uniform, with his helmet in his hand.

                “Well?” Eren looks at Levi. “Are you going to help me, or are you just going to stare?”

                Levi takes a deep breath - just enough to make it sound like a sigh - and he stands up. He places his helmet down next to Eren’s pile of clothing, reaching a hand out and grabbing the first piece of cloth that his fingers find. A little bit of fumbling reveals that he’s picked up a sock. Or maybe it’s a thigh high, Levi doesn’t really know the difference. All he knows is that it’s long.

                Eren, having thrown his shoes and shirt off, unbuckles his pants. Before pulling them down, however, he glances up at Levi.

                “Um, Levi?”

                “Yeah?”

                “Can you look away?”

                “Why?”

                “I’m, um. I’m kind of nervous.”

                “You’re fine, Eren, I promise. There’s nothing you can show me that’ll make me hate you. Especially not on your _body_.”

                Eren thinks this over for a second, before shoving his pants down to the ground in one swift movement. He hops as he tries to get the legs off, before letting the clothing fall to the floor in a heap.

                Really, Levi doesn’t know what Eren has to be insecure about. He’s fucking _gorgeous_ , his body on display for Levi, naked except for a pair of tight boxers _._ His legs, especially, but even his upper body and the curves of his hips, the transition of everything, the way that his skin is visibly smooth and soft and _Levi needs a bottle of water, he’s so fucking thirsty-_

Levi straightens out the legging in his hands, waiting as Eren pulls the dress on over his body. He turns around and lets Levi zip up the back, taking a moment to adjust the uniform. Levi’s trying so, _so_ hard not to stare at his ass, but hell, it’s like trying to resist a fucking chocolate cake that’s been set in front of him. He’d like to think that one or two glances would suffice, but his eyes say otherwise, what with how they’re drawn downwards. Even with the dress on, Eren’s ass is easy to see, in that the back end of his skirt is slightly higher than the front end is because his damned ass could rival that of someone who’s just had extensive plastic surgery. Except Eren seems to be all natural.

                Eren probably does a shit ton of squats. It makes sense. He _is_ a cheerleader, after all.

                Much like he’d done on the first day that Levi met Eren, Levi holds open the hem of the thigh high, inviting Eren in. Eren slides his foot into the hole, the sock making it’s way up to his knee before stopping. That’s when Levi has to position himself behind Eren, arms over Eren’s waist, thumbs hooked to the top of the thigh high as he tries to will it up Eren’s leg. It’s skin tight, so much so that it requires a hell of a lot of wiggling on Eren’s part to get himself inside. He has to tug the fabric up a few times to get rid of extra lumps in the legging, but eventually the two of them manage to get Eren’s leg covered.

                Leg, being singular. They still have another thigh high to put on Eren.

                Levi picks up the other legging, and he helps Eren into it much the same way as he had the first one. The only difference is, Levi ends up unconsciously grabbing Eren’s ass in the process. The only reason that he realizes this, of course, is because Eren brings it up.

                “Levi?”

                “Uh-huh?” Levi says, having just finished getting Eren’s thigh high on his body. He smooths out the top, ridding it of any creases.

                “You’re, um. You can let go of my butt now.”

                It’s only then that Levi understands that the warmth against his hand - the one not trying to dress Eren - is _ass._ The situation might not even be so awkward, if it weren’t for the fact that Levi had gone so far as to lift up the back of Eren’s dress as a means to reach his rear.

                Levi slowly removes his hand from Eren’s ass, retracting his body away from where he’d been pressed up against Eren’s. Every part of Levi that had itself against Eren feels flushed, it almost tingles with the desire to have itself on Eren once more. His fingers, especially, the fingers that had the pleasure of knowing what Eren’s ass felt like, they itch with pure _want_.

                Eren doesn’t even seem to mind that Levi was touching him. He’s shrugging it off, bending over - _fuck yes_ \- to scoop up his old clothing off the ground. He opens a random locker, shoving his attire in it before turning to Levi with a huge grin on his face.

                “Hey, Levi.”

                “Mm?”

                “You watched me practice last week, remember?”

                “Yeah, when you fucked up that first routine?”

                “What, the flipping?” Eren scoffs, “I only messed up because you distracted me.”

                “How did I distract you?”

                “By being _you_.”

                “I completely understand.” _Sarcasm_.

                “ _Anyways_ ,” Eren steps up to Levi, placing his hands on Levi’s shoulders. “I wanna watch _you_ play this time.”

                “You won’t get in trouble for missing practice?”

                “Well, _you_ didn’t. And your coach is my grandfather. I’m sure he’ll defend me if the cheer captain tries to yell at me.”

                “I still can’t believe that bastard is your grandfather. He made me run thirty laps around the school last week for no fucking reason. We weren’t even at practice.”

                "He might still be mad at you for skipping practice to watch me that one time. I heard him grumbling about it just this morning."

                “ _Shit_."

                Levi moves away from where Eren had his hands on his shoulders, choosing instead for a position in which he can walk Eren out of the locker room and onto the playing field. His arm’s wrapped around Eren’s waist, his heart pounding at such a rate that it feels numb. Eren doesn’t fight Levi’s hold, and he actually fucking _rests his head on Levi’s shoulder._

                Levi’s surely going to die. He’s going to die because of some angelic brat whose ass is like candy and whose hair feels like silk against Levi’s cheek.

                                                                                                             ~|~

                “So have you just moved into my locker now, then?”

                Eren sends Levi a side glance, preoccupied with looking in the mirror attached to Levi’s locker door - which, by the way, wasn’t there until several days ago. Eren had brought it into school, waited by Levi’s locker as per is the usual for him, and then revealed the item to Levi and begged that he be allowed to put it on his door. His reasoning had something to do with Eren always hanging out with Levi in the mornings, therefore it’s convenient for Eren, but Eren’s reasoning doesn’t matter to Levi. Levi wouldn't say no to him no matter what.

                Eren holds up a little container in one hand, the other clutching a brush. He’s doing his eye makeup, though when he’d been waiting for Levi, he already had most of it on.

                Levi’s not sure if he’s actually seen Eren _without_ the eye makeup on yet. He wears it so often, even on days where he’s not training.

                Eren’s still beautiful. He’s always been beautiful, at least to Levi.

                “You don’t mind me being here, do you?” Eren asks in reference to Levi asking about their locker arrangement.

                “No. Just wondering.”

                “Hm.”

                It’s silent, then, as Levi shoves his backpack into the locker. It isn’t until he hears a quick gasp from Eren, does Levi remove his head from inside the locker just in time to see a fairly tall girl standing where Eren had been. Eren’s about a foot behind her, looking a little dazed.

                “Wh-”

                “Hi, Levi,” the girl says, fluttering her eyelashes. “Remember me?”

                “Ah. Uh.”

                “My name’s Sasha! Maybe you know Connie? Short kid with a loud voice?”

                Levi blinks. “Who?”

                “Exactly! Well, I have a little friend who likes you and wants to go on a date with you.”

                “Er. It’s not Connie, is it?”

                “No! I don’t think so, I mean.” Sasha speaks fast, the words tumbling out of her at a rate that would put even Hanji to shame. “But I know you know the girl, she’s like your biggest fan! She’s also a cheerleader, wow, Levi, you’re popular with them, aren’t you? Of course you are! I’ve heard five other girls say that they like you. But I’m not here to help all of _them_. I’m here to help _one_ of them-”

                “Who the hell is it?”

                Sasha grips Levi’s chin, forcing him to look across the hall at a group of three people. One’s short with strawberry blonde hair, surrounded by two taller guys, both of which are turned with their backs to Levi.

                “See the girl there?” Sasha asks. “Her name is Petra. She’s in _love_ with-”

                “No, thank you.”

                “No?”

                “I don’t like her.”

                Sasha pulls away from Levi, looking a little distraught. She tries again, but Levi shakes his head, adamant on rejecting the offering of dating Petra.

                He only vaguely knows who Petra is. He’s seen her a few times here and there, usually dressed in her cheerleader uniform. She doesn’t look like a bad person. But Levi already has his eyes on someone else.

                Sasha frowns at Levi, giving up and turning away to leave without having had put up an incredible fight. She catches sight of Eren - apparently not having previously noticed him, despite clearly having had pushed him aside just a minute ago to get to Levi - and she pins him to the lockers, rambling out a question about _potatoes,_ and why is it necessary to pin Eren to the locker to ask him about potatoes? Levi wants to glare at the girl, but Sasha has eyes only for Eren at the moment.

                “-nie told me that you told him that you don’t like potato salad, is that true? But you ate the potato salad that I made for you last week! I thou-”

                “Ah, Sash,” Eren interrupts, “Can we save this for later? I’m- I’m kind of busy.”

                Sasha frowns again, pouting. She reluctantly lets Eren go, giving him a small reassuring smile before dashing off down the hallway. Thankfully, not towards Petra - Levi might not want her, but he doesn’t really want to see her upset over being given the news of her rejection, either.

                “Eren?” Levi asks. Eren returns to his place in front of the mirror in Levi’s locker, but he looks like he’s about to cry.

                “Mm?”

                “Who the fuck was that?”

                “Hah. Sasha. She’s a-a friend of mine. She’s on the cheer team with me. A little forceful, but I like her. Petra, too. We talk sometimes.”

                Levi wants to ask what’s wrong. So badly. He needs to know why Eren’s fingers are trembling around his makeup brush, why his cheeks have turned a bright red, why his eyes are watering. Levi feels a sudden burst of anger in him, the fire that fuels his passion for Eren being ignited into a fury that can only be satiated by Eren’s happiness. With the absence of Eren’s smile comes the absence of Levi’s chill.

                “Ere-”

                “Hey, Levi? S-Should I use- No, nevermind. I’ll use white eyeliner. Like I usually do.”

                “Eren.”

                Eren doesn’t look at Levi.

                “Oi, brat.”

                Still nothing.

                It's been a week since Levi had to help Eren get dressed in the locker room, two since Levi watched Eren at his cheer practice. When Eren watched Levi practice, Levi couldn't help but feel nervous, constantly looking back at the bleachers to see Eren's grin and the little hand waves that he gave, the thumbs up’s, the flow of his hair against the wind. Eren's a breathtaking sight, and Levi fears that he's let his feelings go too far for the boy.

                But, then again, the end-of-the-semester dance is coming up. Perhaps Levi can use that as his chance to woo Eren over. If Eren's still going with him, that is. Levi knows for a fact that _he_ would never choose anyone else, not even Petra, over Eren as his date for an event like that.

                So Levi just has to hope that nobody else has their eye on Eren.

                “This is exactly why I call you a brat, you know,” Levi nudges Eren’s calf with his toe. Eren, finally, turns his head towards Levi at that, revealing that he _is,_ in fact, close to tears. He’s red beneath his eyes, the makeup on his skin enhanced by his flushed flesh.

                He’s cute, despite the sadness that taints his perfect features. He’s cute, despite how much Levi would rather it be a smile on Eren’s lips.

                Or, if at all possible, Levi would rather it be _his_ lips on Eren's. Every time he touches Eren, the urge to keep him close grows stronger and stronger. Levi likes Eren, but Eren is the sort of irresistible that keeps Levi caught between wanting to cherish him and wanting to nail him against a locker.

                “What?” Eren blinks, his eyebrows knit.

                “That’s why I call you a brat.”

                “Yeah, I got _that_. But I don’t understand.”

                “Only a _brat_ would be so stubborn as to not admit when they’re feeling bad.”

                “How do you know that I’m feeling bad?”

                Levi points his thumb over at the mirror by Eren. “You’ve seen what you look like right now, haven’t you?”

                Eren bites onto his lower lip, turning away from Levi. Levi can tell that he’s gotten Eren to grin, though. It’s so _obvious._ There’s no other reason for him to hide his face.

                “Tell me what’s wrong, _brat_ ,” Levi murmurs. He steps a little closer to Eren, and Eren looks down at him again. It’s only mere inches separating their noses.

                “Nothing’s wrong.”

                “ _Brat._ ”

                “Your breath smells nice.”

                “Don’t change the subject.”

                “It reminds me of toothpaste.”

                “Maybe it’s because I actually brush my teeth, yeah?”

                Eren giggles. Levi can’t get enough of it.

                “Mm, Levi?”

                “Eren?”

                “Um. You, uh, you know the dance that’s coming up, right? At the end of the semester.”

                “Uh-huh.”

                “Are you still taking me?”

                “Hm. _Maybe_.”

                “Wha-? Maybe?”

                “I’ll only take you if you can promise me something.”

                “What is it?”

                “I get to take the lead when we dance.”

                Eren smiles, and Levi would like to say that it’s fondness he sees in Eren’s eyes. He gives Levi a nod.

                “Yeah, I don’t see why not.”

                Levi couldn’t be much happier. Even if his face doesn’t show it. And even if he’s going to one of the last dances of his high school career with a total _brat._

                At least Eren’s a cute brat.

                                                                                                             ~|~

                “Levi, you didn’t tell me that you’re going to a _school dance!_ ”

                Hanji shakes Levi’s shoulders. It leaves him unfazed as he downs the water bottle in his hands, but the look on Hanji’s face is worth cowering at. She’s in one of her excited moods again, and unfortunately for Levi, they’re at his _house,_ meaning that the only way to escape whatever she has planned for him would be to shove her out the front door, and Hanji’s just not that easy to get rid of.

                “I didn’t think it was impor-”

                “ _Didn’t think it was important?_ Levi, _everything’s_ important! Who’re you going to the dance with?”

                “Who said I was going with anybody?”

                Levi steps out of his kitchen and into his living room, throwing himself onto a single-person chair. This turns out to be a _horrible_ idea on his part, as Hanji bounds into the room right after him and hops onto his lap, knocking the wind out of him with her weight.

                “You’re going with someone. I can see it in your eyes.” Hanji leans against Levi, _way_ too close for comfort. Levi can feel his legs going numb underneath her squirming body. “Is it a girl?”

                “Nuh-uh,” Levi shakes his head. He takes another drink from his water, nearing the end of the bottle.

                “So it’s a boy, huh? Is it Eren?”

                Levi chokes on the drink he’d been taking, which makes Hanji burst into giggles.

                “It _is!_ It’s Eren! Levi, how did you get so _lucky?_ Eren’s a cutie! You know, I overheard some guy talking about how cute Eren’s butt is the other day, I’m surprised that Eren decided to settle on you!”

                “The hell is that supposed to mean?”

                “Nothing. I mean, it’s just that, Eren could go for other people. But he’s going for you. And you’re scary. To look at, at least.”

                “Hah.”

                “Did you have other options? Or was Eren the only person who wanted to go out with you?” Hanji pushes her glasses up on her face, kicking her legs out. Levi has half a mind to push her off of his lap and onto the ground.

                “I _did,_ ” Levi mutters, “Nobody I care about, though.”

                “Like who?”

                “How the hell am I supposed to remember?”

                “I remember everybody who’s asked _me._ ”

                “That’s because _nobody_ asks you.”

                “Not true! I’ve had _plenty_ of suitors.”

                Levi scoffs. “Yeah, right, they all probably mistook you for someone else, huh?”

                “ _No!_ Well, one of them did. But only one! That’s not what matters, though. What _does_ matter is that you’re going to a dance with _Eren!_ ”

                “Why is that what matters?”

                “Don’t you know, Levi? School dances are the first step towards marriage. If things go right, you might be asking Eren to marry you soon.”

                “I don’t thi-”

                “ _Oh, Levi!_ Are you going to marry Eren? I hope so. Can I be the ring bearer? Or the maid of honor? Or, better yet, can I read your wedding vows? Who’s going to wear the dress? I’ll bet Eren would. He already wears a cheerleading dress. Unless _you_ really want to wear the dress. I don’t know if they make dresses for men like you, though.”

                “‘ _Men like me?_ ’”

                “Yeah. Kinda big. Muscles. Pale skin. Mean face. No butt. Som-”

                “Nevermind. I’m not wearing a wedding dress.”

                “So Eren is?”

                “ _We’re not getting married._ ”

                “ _Yet._ You will be. Just watch. That, or you’ll break up. And then Eren will get a new boyfriend.”

                “We’re not actually dating yet.”

                “Oh?” Hanji pinches Levi’s cheek. “So Eren’s still on the market, then, huh? I wouldn’t wait too long, if you want him, Levi. He’s got a cute butt. Cute butt’s only stay single for so long.”

                Levi glares at her. She returns his glare with a grin.

                “You _do_ like Eren,” Hanji says, “Don’t you?”

                “Would I be going to a dance with him if I didn’t?”

                “I mean, _romantically._ ”

                Levi doesn’t answer her, pretending to be preoccupied with taking a long drink from his bottle. His bottle which is actually empty now.

                “I can see it in your eyes,” Hanji continues after, apparently, realizing that Levi’s avoiding the question. “Plus, you stare at him a lot.”

                “Purely a coincidence.”

                “ _Liar._ ” Hanji frowns, but her frown only lasts for about two seconds before it melts right back into a smile. “You know, I talked to Eren about you a few days ago. At the last practice, yeah? While you were doing the warm-up drills, the cheer team was having a discussion. I pulled Eren aside to talk to him.”

                “Mhm?”

                “I asked him how he felt about you.”

                “And?”

                “I’ll tell you what he told me if you promise to tell me the truth about how _you_ feel about _him._ ”

                Levi considers this. He doesn’t want to tell Hanji that, yeah, _maybe_ Levi really likes Eren, because Hanji’s the kind of person who’ll make it so that the subject of Levi liking Eren is brought up as often as is possible and is used to her advantage as often as is possible. " _Her advantage"_ being the ability to use Levi's crush as a method of teasing him, because Hanji has a thing for embarrassing Levi.

                But Levi’s _dying_ to know if Eren likes him as more than just a locker buddy and a person to go to a shitty school dance with.

                Levi’s spent too much time admiring Eren and thinking over the things he’s said and the things he's done. Levi rarely bothers to remember the things that he does with other people unless it’s important, but Eren’s a different story. He remembers Eren almost crying after Sasha mentioned that Petra likes Levi, and he remembers the way that Eren’s hair would hit his forehead as the wind would blow through it on the football field every week. He even quite distinctly remembers which days Eren’s gone outside with his black long-sleeved undershirt on beneath his cheer uniform - he’s been wearing it more often than usual in recent times - versus the days where Eren shows off his arms. Hell, Levi can even remember all of the different sorts of suspenders that Eren’s worn around Levi.

                Speaking of which, Levi likes Eren’s suspenders. They’re different. They’re _unique._

_Eren’s_ unique. To Levi, at least.

                “I promise,” Levi settles on. He regrets the phrase as soon as it’s out, however, because a glint passes over Hanji’s glasses when she pushes them up on her face.

                “ _So!_ I grabbed Eren and pulled him aside, yeah? I asked him how he felt about you. He said that he - prepare yourself - he's _totally in love with you!_ Okay, he didn't use those exact words. But he said something similar enough."

                "So he likes me?"

                "He does!"

                Levi's heart feels like it's trying to bust out of his chest. It pounds rapidly against his body, reminding him over and over that it's there, and that it likes what Hanji's just told him. He knows that what's she's saying is the truth, too, because Hanji might exaggerate, but she rarely _lies_. Knowing _that_ only makes Levi more anxious.

                "Huh."

                " _So?_ " Hanji pulls on Levi's ear, earning a growl from him.

                "What?"

                "How do you feel about Eren? Don't even try lying. I know the truth."

                "If you know the answer, then why do I have to say it?"

                "The first step towards marriage is coming to terms with your feelings!"

                "I thought that the first step towards marriage was taking him to a dance," Levi scoffs.

                "So you _do_ want to marry him?"

                "I didn't say that."

                “But secretly you do.”

                “Hey, Hanji.”

                “Hm?”

                “Do me a favor.”

                “What?”

                “ _Get the hell off of me._ ” Without even waiting for her reaction, Levi presses his palms to her side and shoves her to the ground, where she lands in front of the chair with a loud _thud!_ Her arms and legs stick up, desperately searching for something to grab onto so that she can pull herself back up. She ends up clutching onto Levi’s leg.

                “But, Levi!”

                “Go away.”

                “You’re always so _grumpy._ Eren must really like you if he’s willing to put up with this.”

                “ _Go away._ ”

                “Can I at least pick out the outfit that you’re going to wear to the dance?”

                Levi stares down at Hanji. She’s still on the floor, her fingers wrapped around one of Levi’s calves, her chin resting on his knee. He could easily kick her away, given their position, but it wouldn’t deter her in any way. Knowing her, she’d just pick herself back up and pull Levi into a headlock. Levi might be captain of a football team, but Hanji pays no mind to any sort of fact about Levi being stronger than her. She acts as though she’s so much stronger than Levi is, but that might just stem from her eccentricity. Or, to put it more bluntly, _she’s crazy._

                “Sure,” Levi sighs.

                “ _Yay!_ ”

                “Just don’t make me look stupid.”

                “I won’t! I promise. I’ll make you look so good that Eren’s _drooling_.”

                “You better, Shit-Glasses.”

                                                                                                             ~|~

                Hanji kept up her end of the deal, to say the least.

                She _did_ end up constructing an outfit for Levi that isn’t too bad. Levi honestly couldn’t care much less about what he wears, though, because he’d too preoccupied with thoughts of how _Eren’s_ going to look, and as to whether Eren would bother dress up or whether he’d arrive in his usual suspenders and eye makeup.

                As for how Eren _did_ decide to dress up, when Eren walked up and greeted Levi by the entrance to the school, Levi was nothing short of blown away. Eren had on a dress, _a fucking dress,_ a dress that was the sort of green to match his irises. It looked like silk, and when Levi had wrapped his arm around Eren’s waist and led him inside, he found out that it _was_ silk. It felt soft against Levi’s fingers, and Levi found a sort of joy in how the dress curved to Eren’s figure, showing off his hips and waist and stomach in a way that still makes Levi’s eyes roll back into his head.

                Right now, Levi has Eren in an empty hallway, their bodies sitting down on a staircase. Eren’s closest to the wall, his knees pulled close to his chest, the dress riding up on his legs so that a good portion of his thighs are exposed to Levi. Levi, of course, takes that as his opportunity by placing his fingers gently on Eren, just above his knee. Eren leans into the touch, and in fact, he has his head placed into the crook of Levi’s neck, hair tickling Levi’s ear. There’s the faint sound of music coming from the school’s auditorium, just loud enough to reassure Levi and Eren that the dance is still going on, but just quiet enough to let them know that they’re in a fairly intimate place. Another person could come back here and see them, but the chances of that seem slim at the moment.

                Eren’s breathing is steady on Levi’s collar. Levi traces small patterns onto Eren’s leg, his fingers caressing his skin lightly.

                They’ve only been at the dance for about thirty minutes, ten of which have been spent just like this. Levi tried dancing with Eren, but Levi proved to have absolutely no talent in dancing. He’d managed to step on Eren a few times too many, given that Eren’s wearing open-toed shoes and each stomp of Levi’s foot on his earned Levi a surprised yelp from Eren, and when Eren offered to try leading, Levi shot the request down. Looking back on it, he feels a little childish for having so adamantly refused to let Eren take the lead, but who the hell cares. Eren got tired of being stepped on, which is what ultimately led to them being _here,_ away from the crowd, and sitting next to Eren is a million times better than accidentally hurting him.

                “Mm, Levi?” Eren murmurs. His voice sounds so soft, Levi could picture himself falling asleep to it. Which is saying a lot, because Levi doesn’t ever really get much sleep at all.

                “Yeah?”

                “I missed you.”

                “Missed me?”

                “Yeah. Last night.”

                “Last night was Thursday, Eren. We were only separated for like, half a day.”

                “Yeah. I still missed you.”

                “You’re cute, brat.”

                Eren giggles, rubbing his nose into Levi’s neck. It’s hard to breathe when Eren’s so _close,_ but Levi wouldn’t trade this moment for anything. He loves having Eren’s lips lie against his shoulder, and even though it makes Levi’s heart pump faster than it does after a game of football, he loves having Eren around.

                Levi squeezes Eren’s leg, feeling Eren grin from where he has his face pressed into Levi.

                “You’re cuter, Levi.”

                “Nah.”

                “No, it’s true.”

                “No, it’s not.”

                “Yes, it is.”

                “Nuh-uh.”

                “Uh- _huh_.”

                “Only brats are cute.”

                “And you’re not a brat?”

                “No.”

                Eren’s still giggling as he lifts his head up, his voice now unmuffled. It fills Levi’s ears and sends unfamiliar sensations down his spine, sensations that he can’t say he enjoys but certainly doesn’t loathe. Eren does that to him - he makes Levi feel different things than he’s used to. He makes Levi go through things he’s never gone through before.

                “You look really nice tonight,” Eren whispers, leaning forward so that his lips press behind Levi’s ear. Levi has to bite onto himself to stop the moan that threatens to slip out.

                “You look better.”

                “But-”

                “Actually, Eren, I’ve been meaning to ask you something.”

                “What is it?”

                “Why do you wear dresses? Like, you said that they have male cheerleading uniforms. So why not wear one of those?”

                “Hm. I don’t really like them,” Eren shrugs, “They aren’t as comfortable. And they’re _so fucking ugly_ compared to the dresses.”

                “So what about the suspenders, then? Why do you wear _those?_ ”

                “Uh, well, I started wearing stuff like that when I was, um, maybe five? My parents made me dress up as a nerd for Halloween. But I kind of liked the outfit. So I asked for them to buy me more suspenders and flannel and, you know, those kinds of things.”

                “And the style just stuck with you?”

                “Mhm.”

                “So what about the dress that you’re wearing tonight?”

                “I hate suits. You remember Sasha, right? The girl who, um. She told you about Petra liking you.”

                “Yeah.”

                “She helped me pick out this dress.”

                “Tell her I said thanks. You look fucking beautiful.”

                Eren smiles, pulling just far enough away from Levi so that they can look into each other’s eyes. Eren’s eyes match his dress, but for some reason, Levi’s mind is drawn towards Eren’s lips. They’re a deep pink, and it's pretty obvious that he's wearing _some_ sort of makeup. There's a noticeable shift in color between his forehead and the area around his eyes, and there's just no way that his plump lips are _that_ red.

                “Wait,” Levi says, blinking in an attempt to distract himself from Eren’s overwhelming presence, “But why would Sasha help you pick out an outfit if she knew that Petra liked me?”

                “It’s kind of a long story.”

                “I’m not going anywhere.”

                Eren sighs. He moves away from Levi, leaning his body against the wall. He shifts so that his legs are in Levi’s lap, and Levi switches from holding onto his thigh to holding onto his knees, but hell if it isn’t tempting to touch Eren in other places, what with how his skirt has risen up so that it’s only covering the necessities. His legs are bare, no thigh highs or socks, his golden skin beckoning for Levi to move his hands up a little higher. But Levi maintains his hold on Eren’s knees. For now.

                “Well,” Eren starts, “A few days after Sasha told you about Petra, I let it slip to her that I was going to the dance with you, yeah? She looked a little surprised at first, but then she got really excited and happy for me.”

                Eren pauses, moving his arms so that they’re crossed over his chest. Levi waits. It’s a few seconds before Eren continues.

                “I think Petra overheard me tell her about the dance, or maybe Sasha told her, I don’t know. But Petra got really mad at me. She said something about having liked you for a while, and I started to apologize, but she wouldn’t listen to me. She punched me.”

                “She did what?”

                “Hit me. Over the eye. It bruised.”

                “What else did she do?”

                “Erm, not much. I mean, she, uh, she got her other friend to come and beat me up, too. I think he’s on the football team. But I don’t know for sure.”

                “Yeah?”

                “I have to wear a lot of makeup now while it heals, and I have bruises on my arms as well, but tonight I finally got around to finding some makeup to put over it. The past few weeks I’ve had to wear long sleeves. I, uh, I told Sasha about what Petra and her friend did, and I guess she felt bad, so she took me out and bought me this outfit.”

                Levi wants to punch something. Not Eren, obviously, but _something._

                "Why the hell didn't you say anything to _me_ about it? I’d fuck Petra up."

                “I don’t want you to do _that,_ ” Eren says, avoiding meeting Levi’s eyes. He stares down at his knees. “Petra was just mad. I don’t think she meant to hurt me.”

                “Don’t be fucking ridiculous. Petra deserves to be suspended for that. Who the hell was her friend?”

                “Like I said, I don’t know. He had fluffy hair, though. And an undercut kind of like yours. I didn’t see much else.”

                “They’re both fucking dead the next time I see them.”

                Eren, much to Levi’s surprise, starts _laughing_ at that. Sure, his eyes look a bit glassy, but his chest heaves up and down with each giggle that falls from him.

                “If you beat them up,” Eren says through his chuckling, “Can I watch?”

                “Hell yeah. You can join in, too.”

                Eren laughs even harder at that. Levi squeezes his knees, his eyebrows raised as he watches Eren shrug off any pain that came from the memory of being beaten up. Eren’s so fucking beautiful now, with so little lighting hitting his body, but all the same, he doesn’t _need_ lighting. His tanned skin and silky dress and emerald eyes, his _everything_ illuminates the room and makes up for it being so dark.

                “Hey, brat,” Levi murmurs once Eren’s laughter dies down.

                “Huh?”

                “Get over here and let me kiss you, yeah?”

                Levi hardly has enough time to get Eren’s facial reaction, because Eren thrusts his body forward so far that he’s able to grab Levi’s collar, his mouth pressing roughly to Levi’s. It takes a moment for them to pick up a rhythm, but once it’s established, Levi’s the one with more control. Eren’s legs are still over Levi’s lap, so Levi wraps his fingers around Eren’s waist and pulls him into his lap, the kiss breaking just long enough for Eren to put his legs on either side of Levi’s hips. His knees rest on the stair beneath them, his arms around Levi’s neck, and Levi threads fingers through Eren’s hair, pulling him back into the kiss.

                Admittedly, it’s a rushed kiss. It’s sloppy, and Levi has to lick Eren’s lips more times than he really should before Eren opens up and lets him in. Eren doesn’t put forth much of a fight for dominance, allowing Levi to do what he wants to, which entails him massaging Eren’s ass with his hands while his tongue explores Eren’s mouth. Eren moans, and Levi eats up every noise like it’s candy.

                Eren’s fingers find their way to Levi’s back, scratching lightly through his shirt. Levi’s shirt becomes ruffled from how Eren handles it, his hands going from scratching his back to clutching the fabric to smoothing it out, from tugging to clawing to tracing patterns against. Eren touching Levi’s back only makes the sensations that Eren sends through Levi _that_ much more pleasurable, and he really can’t help himself when his fingers slide up the back of Eren’s dress and grab onto his ass.

                Eren’s moans become louder at that, his back arching and molding into Levi’s. Levi plays with the hem of Eren’s underwear - _shit, is he wearing panties?_ \- twisting his fingers around the fabric. Levi’s tongue brushes against Eren’s in his mouth, and Levi can’t focus on anything but the feeling of Eren all over him.

                “ _L-Levi_ ,” Eren gasps, trying to get the words out while Levi tries to keep the kiss going, “Take me upstairs.”

                “Upstairs?”

                “I-Into an empty classroom.”

                Levi doesn’t have to be asked twice. He scoops Eren up - Eren’s surprisingly light - with his hands around Eren’s thighs. Eren’s legs wrap around Levi’s waist, and the two of them stumble up the staircase, Levi caught between wanting to focus only on getting him and Eren into a private room and wanting to nibble on the skin of Eren’s throat.

                Levi moves clumsily, passing a few doors before deciding on a classroom. He kicks the door open, dropping Eren onto his feet. He whirls around, slamming the door shut behind him and, with trembling fingers, he locks it.

                “ _Eren,_ ” Levi breathes, facing him once again.

                “Levi?”

                Levi stares up at him. They shouldn’t be doing this. Eren’s a freshman. That means he’s only about fifteen or sixteen years old, and Levi’s senior. So _he’s_ seventeen. They’re both not old enough to be considered an adult yet. Really, Levi’s pretty certain that he shouldn’t do this with _anybody,_ but this is _Eren._

                And Levi makes exceptions for Eren.

                The lights in the room are off, and it’s only the moonlight shining through the windows that helps Levi see. He guides Eren over to the teacher's desk, and he shoves as much of the belongings off of it as he can so that the papers and pens and pictures all hit the ground with enough volume to drown out the faint music sounding from downstairs.

                Levi turns around to face Eren, gripping his wrists and throwing him onto the desk. He climbs on top, kissing Eren once more, his breaths coming out in pants and his tongue swiping at Eren with no sense of harmony. Eren’s body writhes beneath Levi as Levi’s hands feel around his ass, the panties sliding off of Eren’s hips before any other article of clothing is removed.

                With a bit of wiggling on both their parts, the kiss being forced to break so that Levi can lift Eren’s legs up, the panties - _yes, Eren_ was _in fact wearing fucking panties_ \- fall to the floor. Next comes Levi’s shirt, but everything after that stays on because of what Eren says.

                “Levi?”

                “Hm?” Levi hums, his top having just come off. He’s already sweating, his fingers refusing to stay steady due to his nervousness.

                “I wanna ride you.”

                “You- you what?”

                “I, um. If you don’t mind.”

                “No, I- I, uh, aren’t you a virgin, though?”

                “So?” Eren scoffs, “It can’t be _that_ hard.”

                Levi chuckles, not minding the challenge. At all. “Let me get you ready, first.”

                Levi removes himself from Eren, taking to the drawers of the desk beneath him. The first and second drawers prove to be useless, but by the third one, he’s able to snag a bottle of lotion.

                “Prepare your asshole, brat,” Levi says as he climbs back on top of Eren, shifting Eren’s legs so that they’re around Levi’s waist. “I’m gonna fuck you so hard that you won’t be able to walk tomorrow.”

                “If I’m riding you, though, then I’ll be the one doing most of the work, won’t I?”

                “Don’t ruin the moment.”

                Eren laughs. “Me? _I’m_ the one ruining the moment?”

                Levi smirks as he pops open the cap of the lotion and coats his fingers. The lotion’s already warm, which pleases Levi, because he’s intent on making Eren feel as good as he possibly can. Any sort of hurt that he’s been through, physically and emotionally, Levi wants to erase it with these next few actions. That, and he likes hearing Eren’s voice, so what better way to hear more of it than to make Eren squirm beneath him?

                Levi perches his body over Eren’s, fingers finding his entrance. He slips one inside, immediately overtaken with Eren’s tightness.

                He’s gonna need a _lot_ of preparation.

                Eren tries to muffle his voice at first, but he gives up as soon as Levi decides that he’s ready for the second finger. He starts off slowly, switching between scissoring him and curling his knuckles up inside him, burying his hand in as far as he can go without putting too much stress on Eren. Eren’s panting matches Levi’s, but Eren’s a tad more audible with the moans escaping his throat. Eren nudges Levi’s lower back with his foot, begging for the third finger with slurred words and hurried gasps.

                Levi doesn’t hesitate to comply.

                He watches Eren’s face carefully, sliding the third finger into his body. Eren’s face has contorted itself, twisting with the emotions that course through him, pleasure evident in his tone and how he begs with broken sentences, _“More, Levi, m-more, please, please, f-fuck-”_

                Levi, unable to handle it anymore, takes his fingers out of Eren. Already, he misses the warmth, his skin tingling and his body trembling, but he’s removed from his thoughts when Eren takes the hint and flips them over so that Levi’s back is to the desk and Eren’s knees are on either side of his waist.

                Eren fumbles with Levi’s pants, unzipping them and pulling his cock out. He uses his hand to pump his length a few times to make sure he’s hard enough before positioning himself on top, hands to Levi’s stomach as he slowly sinks down on Levi’s dick. Levi chokes back a groan, gripping Eren’s thighs - Eren’s still wearing his green dress, which Levi tries to pull up as high as he can. He wants to see as much of Eren as is possible tonight.

                Eren moves so slowly that it’s almost painful. He keeps himself around only the tip for a few moments, eyes shifting back and forth before landing on Levi’s face. Noticing the expression on Levi’s face - which, Levi hadn’t realized it, but his eyes must’ve been wide as hell - Eren gives a weak smile. Before Levi can react, his entire length is engulfed by Eren’s warmth and _holy shit, he’s so fucking tight_. Levi knew, from having had fingered him, that Eren was tight, but _this_ is a sort of pleasure that his fingers can’t compete with.

                Eren gasps, taking in all of Levi. He pushes down on Levi’s bare stomach, rising his lower half back up before sitting back down. His movements are clumsy and there’s no rhythm behind them, but Levi doesn’t care. He _loves_ it. He loves having Eren’s ass against his body, and Eren’s face when he’s struck with satisfaction is a sight to see.

                Levi’s nails dig into Eren’s thighs, only allowing a few more sporadic movements from Eren before he takes his own control over the boy. He thrusts upwards, meeting Eren halfway now, earning a surprised cry from him. He keeps up this pattern of thrusting upwards, now making it his goal to try to find his prostate with every fuck. Once he finds it, he angles himself so that he can hit it each time, Eren’s moans and whimpers encouraging him to keep going.

                Eren’s hold on Levi’s stomach weakens, his fingers slipping off several times. It doesn’t deter Levi, however, because he keeps ramming his dick into Eren’s ass, the heat of it making Levi’s eyes glaze over and the tightness rendering Levi unable to focus on anything other than _Eren_.

                “God, Eren,” Levi mutters, eyeing Eren’s face. His cheeks are flushed the brightest red that Levi’s ever seen them, the makeup growing less effective. His eyes are half-lidded, hair sticking to his forehead, and _god fucking damn, Eren’s the cutest thing ever even when he’s got a cock up his ass._ “Y-You’re so _beautiful_.”

                Eren opens his mouth to respond, but he’s interrupted by Levi hitting his sweet spot at a particularly good angle. Eren chokes on his moan, his hips wiggling as he sits down on Levi again, searching for more of that pleasure.

                Eren’s dress sticks to his skin, the silk clinging to his upper body. It has sleeves, thin sleeves that have fallen off his shoulders so that his collar bones are now exposed and stretch against the expanse of his neck. Levi can feel the heat pooling in his stomach, right between Eren’s palms, and he knows it won’t be long before he’s spent.

                In all honesty, Levi could probably cum from the thought of Eren alone. To have him actually on top of Levi, his entrance wrapped around Levi’s cock, his body making gradual movements up and down, Levi’s surprised he can even breathe right now.

                Eren’s hand falls to his cock, wrapping his fingers around himself to try and will himself to an orgasm. Levi, however, uses what little brainpower he has left in himself to swat Eren’s hand away and take Eren’s dick into his _own_ hand.

                Eren’s hardly moving anymore, letting Levi do all of the work. He sits up just high enough for Levi to be able to thrust in and out of him, Levi leaving a little more than the head in with every time that he tries to leave Eren’s body. It only takes a few strokes before Eren’s hit his climax, coating his and Levi’s stomachs with his cum and then slumping forward onto Levi’s chest. Levi, on the other hand, tries to hold out for as long as he can, continuing to push himself up Eren’s tight heat. Eren’s little more than a puddle of whimpers at this point, clutching onto Levi’s abdomen and crying out when Levi’s able to gather enough energy together to aim a hard fuck to Eren’s prostate.

                Levi can’t last for too long, though. Not when Eren’s looking up at him with flushed cheeks and wet eyes and furrowed brows and _what did Levi ever do to deserve someone as beautiful as Eren?_

                Eren’s thighs are wet and dripping when Levi finally finishes inside him, the both of them too tired to do much. It’s Levi who removes himself from inside Eren and carefully rolls him over onto his back, and it’s Levi who picks up his discarded shirt from the floor, using it to try to clean as much of their bodies off as he can. Levi’s not nearly as messy as Eren is, given that Eren’s got cum dripping down his legs _and_ his stomach, whereas Levi only has to clean off his chest.

                “Um, Levi?” Eren asks between pants, propping himself up onto his elbows. He’d been laid onto his back by Levi, his dress positioned awkwardly on his body. Levi’s not much better, however, because his pants are sticking to his skin and he doesn’t even have a clean shirt to wear anymore. He’d used the only one he had for wiping his and Eren’s bodies clean.

                “Huh?”

                “I fully expect at least one more dance before you take me home tonight.”

                Levi raises his eyebrows, a smirk pulling on his lips. “You wanna do it right now? ‘Cause I can’t really go downstairs shirtless.”

                “As long as you lead. I can’t feel my legs.”

                There's a fondness that seeps into Levi's features, an emotion that he can't shake off. Levi positions himself by Eren, wrapping his fingers around his thighs and lifting him up. Eren’s hands find his shoulders, gripping him just tight enough to keep himself upright as Levi moves him away from the desk slowly. Eren’s head lands just next to Levi’s neck, breathing against his collar bones.

                “So. About Petra,” Levi murmurs, chuckling at the groan Eren elicits.

                “You really know how to ruin the moment, don’t you, Levi?”

                “Mm. I was just thinking. You were jealous of her, weren’t you?”

                “What are you talking about?”

                “When Sasha asked me to go out with Petra. You were jealous. You looked like you were about to cry.”

                “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

                “Sure you don’t.”

                Levi is fully aware that what he’s doing for Eren is special. With nobody else would he be standing in a dark, empty classroom, clutter on the floor and his body sticky with the results of having loved Eren. With nobody else would he have his hands slid up the ends of their dress and nails digging into their upper legs.

                Levi wouldn’t bother to take anybody else out to a school dance. But this is Eren.

                And Levi makes exceptions for Eren.

                                                                                                             ~|~

                “Nervous, Levi?”

                “Not a chance, brat.”

                “Don’t lie to me.”

                “I’m not.”

                “Yes, you are, I can tell!”

                “How?”

                “You bite your lips.”

                “Not true.”

                Eren plops down onto the seat next to Levi. They’re on a bench in the men’s locker room, the only other people in the room being a few stray football players still trying to dress themselves. They have only about five minutes until Levi has to be out on the football field, and the same goes for Eren.

                “Why are your lips so red, then?” Eren teases, poking Levi’s lips. Levi grunts.

                “Maybe it’s ‘cause of how you were kissing me earlier, yeah?”

                “I didn’t bite you _that_ hard.”

                “Then why are my lips red?”

                Eren jabs Levi’s side, earning another pained grunt from him. Eren brings himself to his feet after that, his face pink underneath his makeup and a smile stretching across his cheeks. He holds a hand out to help Levi up, but really, all he does is hold onto Levi’s fingers while Levi pushes himself up off of the bench.

                Eren’s wearing his black undershirt, but Levi knows that it’s not because of the bruises anymore. His bruises faded away a while ago. The reason he has for wearing sleeves now is because of the weather outside. It’s winter, of course Eren’s going to want to keep warm.

                Levi wants him to be warm, too.

                “Hey, Eren.”

                “Hm?”

                “Close your eyes and hold your arms out.”

                Eren eyes him warily for a moment before doing what Levi tells him to do. It only takes a few quick movements for Levi to find his locker and pull out what he needs. He slips it around Eren’s arms, and Eren’s eyes fall open as soon as Levi steps away from him.

                “A jacket?” Eren tugs on the sleeves.

                “Varsity jacket. Has my name on the back, too.”

                Eren’s blushing harder now, rubbing the fabric against his cheek. The jacket engulfs his fingers and falls just above his hips, a little short on him but still a good size or two too large for him. Eren’s considerably thin - or, at least, he’s a lot thinner than Levi is.

                “Just gotta let everyone know that you’re mine,” Levi murmurs with a kiss to Eren’s cheek.

                “ _You’re_ the one who has girls all over you, though.”

                “What, you think that you’re not popular, too? I had to beat someone up for staring at your ass yesterday.”

                Eren narrows his eyes. “Please tell me that you didn’t actually beat them up.”

                “Maybe I did. Maybe I didn’t.”

                “ _Levi._ ”

                “We’ll talk about it after the game, yeah? C’mon, brat.” Levi grabs Eren’s hand, leading him towards the exit.

                Levi has no idea when he fell so hard for Eren, or when Eren started liking him back. Levi can’t say that he cares too much, though. He’s just happy that Eren’s with him.

                He can’t say the same about too many other people.

                “Biggest game of the year so far,” Eren so kindly reminds Levi, which makes Levi send a glare his way. Eren giggles.

                “As my boyfriend,” Levi points out, “Isn’t it your job to comfort me, not to make me upset?”

                “Are you upset?”

                “No.”

                “So then I didn’t do anything wrong.”

                Levi rolls his eyes. Eren’s in a fit of giggles, and as much as Eren is pretending that he’s perfectly fine and _Levi’s_ the only one who’s anxious here, it’s pretty fucking clear that Eren’s just as unnerved. He’s laughing just a little bit _too_ much.

                They’ve been through plenty of football games together. Usually, Levi’s able to pinpoint Eren’s voice cheering for him in the background. All that does is encourage him, because Eren’s voice is melodic, and to have it chanting Levi’s name over and over again? Levi can’t kiss him enough times for it. For being there for him, for loving him so unconditionally, for being so damned cute, Levi can’t ever repay Eren for everything that he does for him.

                Levi can’t think of anybody else who he’d be so willing to be with. He can’t think of anybody else that he’d be so willing to touch without either recoiling or without hesitating. Levi _certainly_ can’t think of anybody else who he’d be so happy to help put a cheerleading uniform on - which, Eren’s convinced Levi to help him get dressed up in his outfit before every game now. Levi has a feeling that Eren just wants his hands on him. Not that Levi minds. At all.

                And as for Petra, Levi hasn’t done anything about her yet. He’s still debating what would be the best way to _fucking murder her._ She hasn’t done anything to Eren since before the dance, but Levi’s sworn to himself that, if she _does_ try to hurt Eren again, Levi’s going to find a way to ruin her.

                Eren had also briefly mentioned something about Coach Pixis not approving of Levi being in a relationship with Eren - there was something in there about the old guy having caught Levi with his hand on Eren's ass - but Levi will be damned if lets that bastard tear him away from Eren. Whether he disapproves of their relationship or not, Levi's going to be with Eren.

                The fire that Levi has itself burning in Levi's heart has yet to die down, because Eren’s special to Levi.

                Eren is Levi’s favorite exception.

**Author's Note:**

> i actually haven't really read over this lol but comments are greatly appreciated!! <3


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